Touring DC

From the minute I learned the NECC 09 was being held in Washington DC I knew I had to come. It was even better when we realized that Tara was going to be able to come along as well. Last year I went to the conference alone and it's been two years since Tara and I were able to get away. What better place for a vacation than our nation's capital.

At the onset of our time in DC we knew we wanted to do all the touristy stuff - you know, see the National Mall, visit the Capital, walk around Arlington Cemetery, see the White House. Come on, what else do you do in Washington? We certainly checked off all the major sites as part of our trip.

The National Mall is incredible. I've seen it all on tv, but television can't do this place justice. I think the Lincoln Memorial is one of the greatest things I've ever seen. It is so massive and the craftsmanship is absolutely magnificent. I stood there in awe of it's majesty and the impact the symbol has for our nation. The Washington Monument, WWII Memorial, and the Vietnam Memorial are all fantastic, but Lincoln will be tough to forget.

One of my favorite parts of our DC sightseeing was our trip along the White House. As we were heading down to the Mall we were stopped by a police barricade. Not being locals we weren't sure if this was normal for the area or if something was truly going on. As we waited the excitement built and, sure enough, a motorcade came right in front of us a few minutes later. I can't believe it, but President Obama and his police escort entered the White House grounds right in front of us. Sure, we couldn't tell which vehicle he was in, but you knew you had just seen the President pass by. Wow, what a moment!

The other major tourist stops on our journey around DC were the US Capitol and the White House. As underwhelming as I found the Capitol (it may have been the fact that my camera broke just before we got there), the White House was more that I could have asked for. I loved it! Seeing the candid photos on the walls as you entered was amazing. The portraits as we went though the various rooms were so inspiring. We saw my all time favorite portrait of JFK with his arms folded as he was looking down. It was a fantastic experience and I'm so glad our friend Julie was able to hook us up with the tickets. It was a once in a lifetime event and really made our trip.